Max Verstappen launches new attack on 'anti-racing' F1

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen launches new attack on 'anti-racing' F1

Verstappen wasn't too keen on the battles at the Canadian GP

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Tuesday 26 May 2026 09:12 Updated: 10:10

Despite an exciting battle with F1 rival Lewis Hamilton at the Canadian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen admitted the series was no longer about pure racing.

After a disappointing qualifying session in Montreal, Verstappen managed to claim his first podium of the 2026 season, finishing P3 behind Lewis Hamilton.

It was the duel between former championship rivals that entertained fans during the second half of the race, after Mercedes' George Russell retired with a battery failure and ended the battle for the lead with Kimi Antonelli.

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After keeping Hamilton at bay throughout the closing stages, the Ferrari pulled a spectacular overtake on Verstappen on the outside entering Turn 1 on lap 62. The move sealed Hamilton's best result of second place with Ferrari, with the Brit visibly buoyant in the post-race celebrations.

Verstappen: F1 isn't pure racing

Verstappen on the other hand, who has been a vocal opponent of the new regulations and declared them anti-racing before, was less enthused by the battle and instead compared it to his experience at the Nurburgring, which he decreed 'pure racing'.

Speaking to the media after the race, Verstappen said: "60-40 [power to battery ratio] is the minimum [I’d be happy with]. I know how pure other motorsports can feel like. So then, when you come back to this, it's just, yeah, not very nice."

Verstappen prefers other motorsport series at present.

"I don't want to be too negative now after a race like this, but I know what it feels like to drive pure racing cars and pure overtakes, pure racing, and just natural driving.

"This is all a bit like very anti-driving, anti-racing. Yeah, and that's not what Formula 1 should be about. So, I really hope that next year we can get that 60-40 because that will naturally help everything a bit. Nice time."

F1 Red Bull Max Verstappen Canadian Grand Prix